VAVCOUVER- Most Iranians see their government as the guardian of national sovereignty, security, territory and resources, and choose to move forward by building on the achievements of the 1979 Revolution, rather than regressing to a foreign-controlled puppet regime or falling into the abyss of a collapsed state.

As an Iranian who was born, raised, and educated in Iran — with no government affiliation and now living in the West — I write for readers who are willing to unlearn the mainstream anti-Iran propaganda and understand Iran through the lens of ordinary Iranians. As Julian Assange observed, “Nearly every war that has started in the past 50 years has been a result of media lies” and “If wars can be started by lies, peace can be started by truth.”

Iran is a nation of 92 million proud and patriotic people with a rich civilization and a land mass larger than Britain, France, Germany and Italy combined. It is endowed with abundant natural resources and a critical geostrategic position. Iranians carried out one of the most consequential popular revolutions of the modern era in 1979 and have since weathered Western-backed sanctions, hybrid warfare, and military aggressions, emerging as an increasingly influential nation on the global stage.

Yet the mainstream Western narrative portrays a dystopian caricature of Iran with an unpopular government perpetually on the verge of collapse and a powerless people desperate to be “liberated” by foreign intervention and “regime change.” In this framing, protests over economic or social grievances — often caused or hijacked by foreign adversaries — are amplified and recast as a national cry to overthrow the government, while nationwide demonstrations that draw millions in celebration of the 1979 Revolution or in support of the government against foreign aggression are erased.

Unfortunately, some people fall for the “humanitarian intervention” and “liberation” pretexts for war. These dishonest narratives have paved the way for the recent US-Israeli war on Iran, causing the killing and injuring of thousands of Iranians, destruction of Iran’s civilian infrastructure, casualties among US forces, loss of American assets, disrupting global supply chains, and soaring oil and gas prices.

Iranian public opinion towards Western governments has been shaped by their actions regarding the invasion of the country during World War I and World War II despite Iran’s declarations of neutrality, Great Persian Famine and genocide of 1917-1919, coup d’état of 1953 against Iran’s democratically elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh, supporting the Pahlavi dictatorship until 1979, ever expanding sanctions since the 1979 Revolution, supporting Iraq’s invasion of Iran in the 1980s, shooting down of Iran Air passenger flight 655 in 1988, invasions of and atrocities in Afghanistan and Iraq, violating the Iran nuclear deal in 2018, assassination of General Qasem Soleimani in 2020, and enabling Israeli atrocities particularly since 2023. 

Public sentiment seems to have reached an unprecedented low following the US-Israeli wars on Iran during diplomatic negotiations in 2025 and 2026, assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at age 86 along with several family members including his daughter and 14-months-old granddaughter in his official residence, killing and injuring of thousands of Iranians, double-tap bombing of Minab’s elementary school in southern Iran, sinking of Iran’s Frigate Dena and its crew in international waters, and attacks on Iranian schools, hospitals, heritage sites, stadiums, universities, religious centers, and civilian infrastructure.

Statements from the current US President and leader of the Western imperial alliance — such as ”A whole civilization will die tonight,” “Bring them back to the Stone Age,” "Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran," “no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER,” “Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran,” and “my favorite thing is to take the oil in Iran,” — have further exposed the nature and intentions of the imperial forces.

Recent events have strengthened the resolve of many Iranians who already supported their government and have offered a sobering realization to others who were under the illusion that Western governments cared about Iranian lives and freedoms. A recent survey shows that most diaspora Iranians oppose foreign military aggression and “regime change” intervention against Iran. This sentiment is even stronger and more widespread inside Iran where the devastating consequences of the recent aggressions have been felt the most.

Despite living under foreign economic sanctions and hybrid warfare, most Iranians stand with their government — the Islamic Republic of Iran — when confronted with foreign aggression and interference. These are the top five reasons I hear most often from my fellow Iranians:

1. Independence, sovereignty, and self-determination

The Islamic Republic of Iran has reclaimed and preserved complete Iranian independence, sovereignty, and self-determination since the 1979 Revolution. Contrary to some Western narratives portraying the Iranian government as an authoritarian theocracy imposed over a secular population, it is a robust republican system with direct presidential and parliamentary elections tailored to uphold the principles of the revolution and represent the deep-rooted and intertwined Iranian-Islamic identity of the overwhelming majority of its citizens. The Islamic Republic and its constitution were approved by an overwhelming majority of Iranian voters shortly after the revolution that toppled the Western-controlled Pahlavi dictator. Dark memories of the Pahlavi era — particularly the plunder of national resources, widespread repression, and the mass incarceration, torture, and killings by the notorious SAVAK secret police — are still vivid in the Iranian collective memory.

2. Defense of Iranian territory and natural resources

The Islamic Republic of Iran has successfully defended Iranian territory and natural resources during three major imposed wars, including Iraq’s Western-backed eight-year invasion in the 1980s and US-Israeli aggressions in 2025 and 2026. Iran’s defense has been made possible by a robust and resilient government, which has responded strongly even after the assassination of top political and military leaders, as well as by millions of patriotic citizens who have been willing to risk their lives to safeguard Iran and the achievements of the 1979 Revolution.

3. Unwavering resistance and indigenous development

The Islamic Republic of Iran has shown unwavering resistance in the face of Western-backed sanctions, assassinations, sabotage, armed riots, terrorist attacks, separatist incursions, color revolution attempts, and imposed wars. It has responded by pursuing self-sufficiency and indigenous developments in science, technology, industry, and military capability, rising as an independent and resilient power in West Asia. Compared to pre-revolution Iran, the Islamic Republic oversaw substantial gains in many areas such as life expectancy, literacy rate, human development index, combating poverty and income inequality, professional and public sports, and share of women among university graduates, particularly in the fields of medicine, science, and engineering.

4. Support for resistance and liberation movements

The Islamic Republic of Iran has consistently supported anti-colonial resistance and liberation movements from Nelson Mandela’s struggle in South Africa to the Axis of Resistance in West Asia, standing as the bastion of hope and support for the people of Palestine, Lebanon, Yemen, Iraq, and other oppressed nations against US imperialism and Israeli expansionism. Many Iranians take pride in this stance, viewing it as a moral and historic responsibility at a time when many other governments remain silent or pay lip service while maintaining military and economic cooperation with the US-Israeli axis. The Islamic Republic’s decades-long unwavering support for Palestine and opposition to Israel has also earned it global public sympathy, especially following the live-streamed Israeli genocide of Palestinians in Gaza since 2023.

5. The only path forward

Many Iranians realize that alternatives to the Islamic Republic would bring death, destruction, regression, repression, loss of territory and resources, and subservience to foreign powers.
Plausible “regime change” alternatives — both Western-backed, based outside Iran, and widely unpopular inside Iran — include:
Reza Pahlavi, the son of the ousted Pahlavi dictator, who has lived his entire adult life abroad off the fortune his father stole before fleeing the country in 1979. He has incited deadly violent riots and supported US-Israeli bombardments of Iran with no remorse for the resulting loss of thousands of Iranian lives and destruction of civilian infrastructure.
Mojahedin-e-Khalq (MEK/PMOI/NCRI) cult, a notorious terrorist organization led by Rajavi, which collaborated with Iraq during its invasion of Iran in the 1980s. Rajavi’s cult has committed numerous terrorist attacks in Iran over decades, killing thousands of Iranians.

“Regime collapse” would be another possible outcome if the Iranian government ever fell. This would lead to long-term chaos, civil war, territorial fragmentation, plunder of resources, and widespread death and suffering—similar to what followed the fall of Libya’s central government. Some US and Israeli officials have openly invoked the “Libya model” when discussing Iran.

Non-Iranians and fringe diaspora voices amplified by foreign interests who call for war and “regime change” do not share the values, interests, priorities, and lived realities of people inside Iran. They do not speak for 92 million Iranians who would bear the consequences for generations.

Most Iranians stand with their government as the guardian of national sovereignty, security, territory, and resources, and reject foreign aggression and interference. They choose to move forward by building on the achievements made since the 1979 Revolution, rather than regressing to a foreign-controlled “regime change” alternative or falling into the abyss of “regime collapse.” This widely-held pragmatic view remains largely excluded from mainstream Western narratives about Iran, as its acknowledgement would be detrimental to manufacturing consent for war and foreign interference.